UAE: Free Salik, parking for newly launched heavy-duty Volvo electric truck

UAE: Free Salik, parking for newly launched heavy-duty Volvo electric truck

UAE - Al-Futtaim Auto & Machinery Company (Famco) on Tuesday launched the first-ever heavy-duty electric truck in the UAE and Middle East region.

The truck, manufactured by Sweden’s automobile giant Volvo, has a capacity of 40 tonnes and can run 300 kilometres on a full charge and takes only 2.5 hours to fully recharge in DC mode and 9.5 hours in AC mode. The first batch has been sold to FMCG major Unilever.

Ramez Hamdan, managing director for industrial equipment for UAE, Saudi and Qatar at Famco, said it’s one of the fastest vehicles to be charged and has been tested in hot and cold weather.

In terms of the economic aspect, he said the total cost of an e-truck is much lower than a diesel-operated truck, considering the downtime of the vehicle and the cost of diesel consumption.

“Around 65 per cent of the cost comes from diesel, so firms are a big chunk of that by using e-trucks. Yes, there might be initial big investment, but in the short term, firms will start seeing savings from using electric trucks.”

The truck comes with a 10-year warranty and service contracts. The trucks can mainly be used for transporting FMCG goods and logistics.

Hamdan, however, refused